When we docked at Kusadasi, our ship was dwarfed by the HAL ship Eurodam which was right next to us and over twice our size. Undaunted, though, I hopped on an excursion bus to the site of Ephesus. At one time, Ephesus was a seaport city and the second largest (population 250,000) city in the Roman Empire. However, the port silted up and Ephesus is now 20 miles from the sea and there is nothing left but restored ruins. As I walked through Ephesus, I couldn’t help but wonder what Chicago will look like in 2,000 years and if tourists will be walking through the ruins.
Since I had been to Ephesus in 2005, there were few surprises, but the size and scope of the restored buildings was still amazing. We spent about two hours on a guided walk through the site and I was able to get a lot of pictures. As expected, the place was crowded but, since we got there fairly early, not too bad.
After returning to the ship I had a guided tour of the teeming shopping area of Kusadasi. My expert guide (Adele) was happy to show me the sights and even bought me a shirt - brand-new at Goodwill prices.